Fish Activity

Goals for this activity include:

• turn-taking
• joint attention
• eye-hand coordination
• increase expressive and receptive language (comprehension)

Materials Needed:

• pre-cut fish shape cards from construction paper
• have pictures or flash cards that are of interest to your child eg. food items, transportation, toys etc.
• using a paper clip, place the pictures/flash cards on the fish
• you could either purchase a miniature plastic fishing rod (from your local dollar store) or make one by attaching a magnet to a string and tying the string around a pole, cardboard, hanger, etc.

How to Play:

• Once all fish cards are assembled, turn them upside down and encourage your child to catch a fish one at a time using the fishing rod (hand over hand assistance may be necessary especially, in the beginning). Once s/he catches and turns the fish over, label the picture that your child has caught and encourage him/her to make a sound or even repeat the word.
• Remember, be consistent and use the same pictures for a while or until your child appears to understand them and /or independently label them.

Note – if you are working on articulation or specific sounds with your child, find picture cards or flash cards that have that sound in the word. For example, if your child is having a difficult time pronouncing the letter \”d\” make sure you focus on d words such as dog, duck, doll, dig, etc. It is not necessary that the whole word is pronounced appropriately especially, long words such as dinosaur. Focus on the sound you are working on otherwise your expectations for your child may be too high and the activity may no longer be positive and fun!

Bowling Activity

Goals for this Activity Include:

• turn-taking
• eye-hand coordination
• increase fine and gross motor skills
• increase expressive and receptive language (comprehension)

Materials Needed:

• 6-8 empty plastic water bottles or a plastic bowling kit from your local dollar store
• a medium sized plastic ball from your local dollar store
• 6-8 labelled picture cards

How to Play:

• Use the empty plastic bottles or the actual bowling pins and tape cards to the bottoms of them. If you don’t have any tape just turn the cards upside down and place the bottles or pins on top. Provide your child with a ball and encourage him/her to knock down the bowling pins. Once they are down, encourage your child to look under the bottles or turn the cards over and tell you what the picture is. Remember to use functional words that your child needs to learn or focus on specific sounds that s/he needs to practice. Taking turns bowling is a good way to enhance your child’s social communication skills as this will
  prepare him/her for school, day care and to take turns with peers. Children enjoy this activity and it assists them in maintaining focus, learning language, and socialization skills by just having fun.